Enter the Empyrean
Overview Players have entered The Empyrean - a structure beneath Uazenton used to power the entirety of Betara by exploiting the resources of destitute magic users. Victims were promised support for their family in return for a lifetime of servitude within the Empyrean, which, in reality is a projection into the Astral Plane. Inside, workers would use spells on command utilizing the power enhancing properties of the plane itself to automate services in Betara such as food preparation and waste management. Victims were brainwashed and tortured in an adjacent facility before being brought to one of twelve large antechambers - each with a planar gate dialed to the Astral Plane. Long tubes of fabric extended from the gate and were placed over the victims' heads to project them into the plane. If one of these tubes were damaged, the body within would immediately die. Music Scary Santa music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_PBJSBzLmo History For eons, the Astral Plane remained an amorphous, shadowy world filled with winds of pure thought and swirling pools of color, linking a multitude of planes to one another. The closest thing to a native species would be the Githyanki, who were brought there thousands of years ago in slavery to the Illithid Empire. And for a time it remained this way. Until Apophis arrived. The Githyanki held on to a prophecy of a chosen one who could change the world as he saw fit. He would liberate the Githyanki from their servitude and bring into effect their rightful place in the cosmos. The chosen one never arrived. They Githyanki broke free of their bonds on their own through wit and cunning, and earned their newfound freedom. Millennia later, the chosen one arrived. More cunning and powerful than any ten of the strongest Githyanki warriors, Apophis laid his claim to the Astral Plane. Utilizing it's performance enhancing properties, he build the Empyrean - a system in which unwitting participants would be forced into projecting their minds to the plane and tirelessly cast spells for automating everything from Betara's household chores, to powering their substantial defense systems. Apophis, a Davrosian working as a double agent in Betara, plans to cause this relied-upon system to fail at a critical moment. For a century, the Empyrean has existed here - an untouchable, insulting eyesore to the Githyanki - and a powderkeg, ready to explode within the geopolitical tinderbox of the Betaran-Davrosian war. Notes Players will quickly meet the Githyanki, natives on the Astral Plane If Kervon is still disguised as Apophis, they will attack and capture him They arrive on a flying ship and take them to a village after having a chat about what they're doing If players tell a Githyaki that they intend to destroy The Empyrean: "I've heard enough lies to fill a tome from those who find themselves at the end of a blade. I'll cut out your tongue to save your effort." Make sure to hint that this is the astral plane, and bring up that if their silver string is severed, they die Also make sure the players know the Githyanki weapons are one of the few things that can sever it Only projections can enter the shield of the city In the Githyanki city, players find a puzzle explaining the legend of a chosen one - one who would release them from the illithids and set them free - one who could change the world to his liking. He never arrived. Githyanki rose up on their own. One day, the chosen one returned: an Illithid named Apophis. He created The Empyrean and forever changed the landscape of the plane. A githyanki will assure the players that a new administrator will be sent in - that it's only a matter of time If asked about Shump and told the details, they may surmise that Shump's soul is stuck in a Something Receptacle - if Apophis is indeed dead, all within the Receptacle will soon be lost - start an hourglass once Dark Santa arrives Players must reach the five Architects if they want to shut down the system Shump was captured because he put his head in a thing and gained knowledge that he can no longer remember Shump was hearing a song in infernal, and searched out west to find it Shump will recognize Vyk as the town champion and then tell a joke: "A rogue, a wizard, and an accountant enter a bar... nevermind." Santa: "I don't use the term 'ho' lightly... but Mrs. Clause, you've been a real bitch." Presents Terrasque Mask - Add 3/10 to intimidate checks while wearing - activate to reverse gravity by using the codeword 'up is down, down is up, you about to be dead'. Terrasque Cask - Drink once per day to gain 10/40 hp Terrasque Flask - Drink once per day to gain a spell slot or 3 ki points Terrasque Rapier - Can knock out cold if hits with 15 or higher in curled mode if the victim is unaware. +2/+5 to hit Terrasque Sword - +2/+5 to hit, gun hits +2/+5 with range 30/60 Terrasque Cthulhu - Drinker gets +5 to init, and a re-roll of a die once per day, but you actually have to dirnk from the physical prop Enemies Bumble - Frost Giant: https://roll20.net/compendium/dnd5e/Frost%20Giant#content Reindeer - Armanite MTF 131 Santa and Mrs.: http://worldbuilderblog.me/2015/12/10/more-holiday-monsters/